DEPARTMENT  OF  INTERIOR 


ORGANIZATION  OF  EDUCATION 
IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


REPORT  PREPARED  FOR 

THE  COMMISSION  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  AMERICA 

TO  THE  BRAZa  CENTENNIAL  EXPOSITION 


For  Distribution  at  the  Brazil  Centeimial  Exposition 
1922-1923 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICB 

1922 


DEPARTMENT  OF  INTERIOR 


ORGANIZATION  OF  EDUCATION 
IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


Supplementing  Exhibit 

of  the 

UNITED  STATES  BUREAU  OF  EDUCATION 

at  the 

BRAZIL  CENTENNIAL  EXPOSITION 

Rio  de  Janeiro,  Brazil 

1922-1923 


By 
DR.  J.  C.  MUERMAN 

From  Official  Bulletins 
United  States  Bureau  of  Education 


)D 


1 


i 


ORGANIZATION  OF  EDUCATION  IN  THE  UNITED 

STATES. 


STATE  SYSTEMS. 

.  The  United  States  is  a  federation  of  48  self-governing  Commonwealths 
each  of  which  exercises  independently  all  powers  not  specifically  con- 
ferred upon  the  Federal  Congress  by  the  Constitution  or  derived  by  impli- 
cation therefrom.  Since  the  Constitution  does  not  provide  for  the  control 
of  education  by  the  Federal  Government,  there  is  no  national  system; 
but  the  United  States  contains  within  its  area  49  separate  systems  of  edu- 
cation. 

No  two  of  the  State  systems  are  exactly  similar,  yet  they  possess  cer- 
tain common  factors.  For  example,  all  States  provide  by  law  for  ele- 
mentary education  at  public  expense.  The  usual  length  of  the  public 
elementary  school  course  is  eight  years.  Children  commonly  enter  at  the 
age  of  6  or  7  and  finish  at  the  age  of  14  or  15.  In  all  States  school  attend- 
ance during  a  part  or  all  of  this  period  is  compulsory. 

Although  many  children  enter  school  at  the  age  of  6,  the  adoption  of  the 
kindergarten  as  a  part  of  the  school  system  has  made  it  possible  for  over 
half  a  million  children  to  begin  their  education  at  the  age  of  4  or  5.  In 
the  kindergarten  there  is  no  direct  teaching  in  terms  of  reading,  writing, 
and  numbers,  and  no  instruction  from  books.  Ideas  are  necessary  to 
understand  books,  and  these  must  be  gained  through  excursions,  garden- 
ing, experimental  and  constructive  handwork,  cooperative  play  and  the 
conversation  needed  to  make  these  forms  of  activity  intelligible.  The 
kindergarten  period  is  therefore  an  experience-getting  period  for  the 
children,  and  it  is  through  the  working  out  of  the  knowledge  gained  from 
this  experience  that  the  foundation  is  laid  for  the  more  formal  work  in 
language,  writing,  reading,  and  numbers  in  the  grades  that  follow. 

The  name  "kindergarten"  was  adopted  by  its  founder,  Frederich 
Froebel,  in  Blankenburg,  Germany,  in  1840,  to  express  two  ideas  con- 
cerning the  education  of  young  children — ^first,  that  education  is  the 
guidance  of  children's  development  rather  than  the  imparting  of  in- 
struction; and,  second,  that  this  guidance  must  be  given  by  an  expert. 
The  institution  founded  on  these  principles  has  been  adopted  in  some 
degree  in  all  parts  of  the  world,  but  to  a  greater  degree  in  the  United  States 
than  in  any  other  country.  It  became  known  in  the  United  States 
mainly  through  the  Centennial  Exposition  in  Philadelphia  in  1876,  and 
the  establishment  of  kindergartens  in  the  different  cities  soon  followed. 

3 

500562 


*   •   *  «  ' 


4        '  ORGANiZATiOiN    OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

The  first  of  these  were  mainly  private  or  charitable,  but  as  they  proved 
their  worth  they  were  made  a  part  of  the  school  system.  There  are  at 
present  approximately  1,300  cities  in  which  the  kindergarten  forms  an 
organic  part  of  the  school.  All  of  the  48  States  now  have  laws  permitting 
the  use  of  public  funds  for  kindergarten  education,  and  over  100  normal 
schools  and  colleges  provide  kindergarten  training  courses. 

The  kindergarten  represents  the  active  type  of  education  as  contrasted 
with  the  traditional  academic  type,  and  in  demonstrating  the  worth  of 
this  type  for  young  children  it  has  exercised  an  appreciable  influence  upon 
the  work  of  the  primary  grades.  It  is  to  its  influence  mainly  that  the 
introduction  of  nature  study,  constructive  handwork,  and  cooperative 
games  is  due.  In  this  and  in  other  respects  its  work  is  in  harmony  with 
the  newer  ideals  in  elementary  education. 

Pupils  who  do  not  have  the  advantage  of  a  kindergarten  usually  enter 
the  elementary  grades  at  the  age  of  6  or  7.  After  completing  8  years, 
or  8  grades,  they  are  eligible  to  enter  the  high  school,  in  which  the  course 
is  4  years.  This  completes  the  12  years  of  instruction  provided  in  the 
general  public  school  system  of  the  United  States.  Another  division  of 
the  12  years  called  the  6-3-3  pl^-n  is  sometimes  adopted.  This  plan  pro- 
vides for  6  years  in  elementary  grades,  3  years  in  a  junior  high  school,  and 
3  years  in  a  senior  high  school. 

The  importance  of  the  elementary  grades  is  recognized  and  in  most 
cities  they  are  carefully  cared  for  by  expert  supervisors. 

Public  secondary  schools,  called  high  schools,  offering  a  course  generally 
four  years  in  length,  except  in  the  junior  high  school,  are  also  maintained 
in  every  State.  The  high-school  course  is  based  on  the  elementary  school 
course  and  is  open  to  graduates  of  elementary  schools  or  others  of  equiv- 
alent preparation. 

The  high  school  serves  three  main  purposes.  To  the  great  mass  of 
students  who  frequent  it  it  offers  four  years  of  cultural  and  informational 
study  designed  to  equip  them  for  more  intelligent  and  resourceful  lives 
as  citizens  of  a  democracy.  Its  second  purpose  is  to  prepare  students 
for  various  higher  institutions.  In  the  third  place,  a  number  of  special- 
ized public  high  schools  fit  young  people  for  wage  earning  in  trades  and 
industries.  In  general,  it  may  be  said  that  the  high  school  has  tended 
more  and  more  to  adapt  itself  to  the  needs  of  the  local  community  by 
introducing  studies  of  a  practical  and  vocational  nature  and  by  allowing 
its  students  increasing  latitude  in  the  choice  of  courses  to  be  pursued. 

The  specialized  public  high  schools  are  called  commercial  or  business 
high  schools,  manual  training,  industrial  trades,  or  technical  high  schools. 
Nearly  every  large  city  supports  one  or  more  of  these  special  high  schools. 

Most  States  maintain  normal  schools  for  the  training  of  teachers,  or  a 
more  or  less  well-developed  State  university,  or  both.  The  normal 
schools  and  certain  departments  of  the  State  universities  articulate  with 
the  public  high  school. 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.  5 

Many  normal  schools  have  increased  their  facilities  for  training  teach- 
ers, and  have  developed  strong  courses  fulfilling  the  requirements  for  the 
bachelor  degree.  These  normals  are  usually  known  as  State  teachers' 
colleges. 

The  four-year  courses  of  instruction  are  intended  to  give  an  opportunity 
to  elementary-school  teachers  for  more  extensive  training  and  also  to 
train  teachers  for  the  secondary  schools.  So  far  the  four-year  courses  of 
study  have  largely  served  the  second  group,  primarily  because  many 
of  the  States  reqiure  teachers  in  secondary  schools  to  have  a  bacca- 
laureate degree. 

Alongside  the  public  institutions  various  groups  and  individuals  have 
founded  elementary  schools,  high  schools,  academies,  normal  schools,  and 
colleges.  The  most  extensive  system  of  private  schools  is  that  under  the 
control  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  The  total  enrollment  of  the  Catho- 
lic parochial  schools  is  approximately  2,000,000  students  (192 1).  The 
entire  number  of  Catholic  schools  is  8,706  with  4,760  professors  and 
49,505  teachers.  Other  religious  sects  have  also  established  institutions 
to  provide  education  under  denominational  auspices.  Both  the  religious 
schools  and  the  private  schools  under  denominational  control  parallel 
rather  closely  the  amount  and  character  of  the  training  afforded  by  the 
public  institutions  of  the  same  grade.  These  nonpublic  institutions  and 
systems  are  allowed  perfect  freedom  of  development  under  the  laws  of 
the  country. 

The  foreign  observer,  noting  chiefly  the  dissimilarities  of  the  State 
systems,  is  at  first  inclined  to  think  that  a  hopeless  confusion  of  standards 
and  organization  must  characterize  American  education.  But  the  differ- 
ences are  after  all  superficial  rather  than  fundamental.  The  same  general 
types  of  institutions  are  to  be  found  in  every  State,  whether  they  all  belong 
officially  to  the  State  system  or  not.  Their  interrelations  are  also  essen- 
tially the  same.  There  are  still  certain  inequalities  of  educational  stand- 
ards, especially  among  higher  institutions;  but  these  are  not  so  great  nor 
so  widespread  as  is  often  believed. 

STANDARDS. 

The  State  educational  systems  have  grown  up  independently  of  one 
another.  If  one  takes  account  of  the  provisions  for  education  made  by 
a  few  of  the  colonial  governments  before  the  founding  of  the  United 
States,  the  dates  of  establishment  of  the  49  systems  of  education  have 
covered  a  period  of  something  like  two  centuries  and  a  half.  In  that 
time  the  social  philosophy  of  the  Nation  has  changed.  The  common 
conception  of  the  part  the  State  should  play  in  fostering  and  con- 
trolling education  has  changed  with  it.  According  to  a  widely  prevail- 
ing theory  all  grades  of  education,  from  the  kindergarten  to  the  uni- 
versity, should  be  supported  and  managed  by  the  State  or  local  gov- 
ernment. 


6  ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

Wliether  American  education  ever  will  achieve  complete  uniformity 
in  standards  and  methods  of  management  is  open  to  doubt.  Uniformity 
is  contrary  to  the  genius  of  the  Nation.  The  Americans  are  an  indi- 
vidualistic people.  Their  educational  systems  and  institutions  have 
reflected  this  quality.  These  have  maintained  the  right  to  expand  as 
they  chose  and  to  adapt  their  courses  to  local  needs,  free  from  hampering 
restrictions.  Their  freedom  is,  in  fact,  one  of  the  sources  of  their 
strength.  Nevertheless,  it  may  safely  be  said  that  there  is  now  a 
national  consensus  of  opinion  as  to  what  the  standards  of  admission  to 
and  graduation  from  the  principal  types  of  institutions  should  be,  that 
the  standards  agreed  upon  coincide,  in  the  main,  with  those  in  force  in 
the  corresponding  institutions  of  other  leading  nations,  and  that  they 
are  already  maintained  by  the  best  institutions  of  the  United  States. 
Indeed,  students  from  abroad  will  find  in  those  educational  centers  to 
which  they  will  probably  be  attracted  unsurpassed  facilities  for  ad- 
vanced academic  and  professional  training. 

EVOLUTION  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY. 

THE  COl,l,EGE. 

An  explanation  of  the  prevailing  organization  of  higher  education  in 
the  United  States  properly  begins  with  a  description  of  the  American 
college,  an  institution  which  has  no  exact  counterpart  in  any  other 
country. 

Historically,  the  college  is  the  oldest  of  American  institutions.  The 
first  one.  Harvard  College,  was  founded  in  1636  by  the  early  English 
settlers  in  Massachusetts.  Cambridge  and  Oxford  furnished  its  proto- 
types. Following  the  example  of  these  institutions,  Harvard  College  was 
designed  to  give  training  in  the  liberal  arts,  principally  Latin,  Greek, 
philosophy,  and  mathematics.  Most  of  its  earlier  graduates  entered  the 
Christian  ministry.  In  fact,  to  supply  properly  trained  young  men  for 
this  profession  was  one  of  the  chief  objects  sought  in  the  foundation  of 
Harvard  and  of  the  other  colleges  established  during  the  first  century 
of  colonial  life  in  the  United  States.  Gradually,  however,  the  purpose 
and  character  of  the  college  changed.  The  more  elementary  stages  of 
the  subjects  taught  were  given  over  to  lower  schools.  New  subjects 
were  added  to  the  curriculum.  The  college  lost  its  theological  bent, 
without  becoming  a  training  school  for  other  professions.  It  still 
offered  courses  in  the  liberal  arts,  leavened  more  and  more  by  the  intro- 
duction of  the  sciences,  and  bestowed  upon  those  who  completed  these 
courses  the  degree  of  A.  B. 

Three  very  significant  changes  in  the  relation  of  the  college  to  the 
scheme  of  higher  education  occurred  during  the  nineteenth  century. 
The  first  of  these  was  the  founding  of  the  professional  schools  of  the- 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.  7 

ology,  law,  and  medicine.  Although  students  were,  and  to  some  extent 
still  are,  admitted  to  these  schools  without  a  previous  college  education, 
the  tendency  has  been  constantly  growing  to  demand  a  college  degree 
or  at  least  a  period  of  collegiate  study  as  a  prerequisite  for  entrance. 
The  college  has  thus  become,  in  certain  measure,  a  preparatory  school 
for  those  who  contemplate  a  course  of  professional  training. 

The  second  change  to  which  reference  has  been  made  was  the  devel- 
opment within  the  college  of  departments  of  pure  and  applied  science. 
By  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  degree  of  B.  S.,  granted 
for  work  done  largely  in  the  sciences,  began  to  occupy  a  position  of 
parity  with  the  older  degree  of  A.  B.  Gradually  also  these  courses  in 
science  ramified  further  into  courses  in  engineering.  The  engineering 
schools  or  divisions  thus  became  coordinate  parts  of  many  colleges  of 
liberal  arts. 

The  third  and  most  momentous  change  in  the  status  of  the  college 
was  brought  about  by  the  establishment  in  connection  with  certain 
colleges  of  graduate  schools  on  the  model  of  the  faculties  of  philosophy 
of  German  universities.  The  graduate  schools  have  grown  up  principally 
in  the  last  45  years;  indeed,  the  movement  received  its  first  strong 
impetus  with  the  founding  of  Johns  Hopkins  University,  incorporated 
in  1867  and  opened  for  instruction  in  1876.  The  graduate  schools  offer 
to  college  graduates  courses  leading  to  the  degrees  of  A.  M.  and  Ph.  D. 
and  degrees  of  corresponding  grade  in  the  technical  branches.  They  pro- 
vide opportunities  for  advanced  study  in  the  arts  and  sciences  and  for 
research  similar  to  those  provided  by  the  leading  European  universities. 

From  the  origin  of  colleges  until  the  foundation  of  the  graduate 
schools  the  college  curriculum,  aside  from  the  development  of  separate 
courses  in  science  and  engineering,  had  undergone  but  slight  changes. 
A  few  new  subjects  had  been  added  to  it  from  time  to  time.  Options 
between  certain  studies,  as,  for  instance,  between  a  modern  and  an 
ancient  language  or  between  two  elementary  sciences,  were  slowly 
introduced.  In  general,  however,  the  college  program  of  studies  was 
fixed  and  definite,  centering  about  a  core  of  Latin,  Greek,  and  mathe- 
matics. With  the  growth  of  the  graduate  school  and  the  changed  social 
and  educational  ideals  has  come  the  introduction  of  many  new  branches 
of  study.  Columbia  University,  for  example,  now  offers  to  candidates 
for  the  bachelor's  degree  instruction  in  45  different  subjects.  Its  offer- 
ings are  almost  paralleled  by  a  number  of  other  institutions. 

The  prescribed  course  of  study  for  the  bachelor's  degree  has  broken 
down,  and  there  is  now  a  general  tendency  to  confine  required  work 
to  but  two  or  three  subjects  and  to  allow  the  student  much  freedom 
of  choice  with  respect  to  the  rest  of  his  program;  or  to  ofifer  various 
groups  of  studies  organized  to  correlate  with  a^  single  central  subject 
and  to  permit  the  student  to  choose  one  of  these  groups. 


8  ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES. 

THE    UNIVERSITY   PROPER. 

The  college  is  the  nucleus  from  which  all  higher  institutions  of  learn- 
ing have  sprung.  Before  the  nineteenth  century  there  were  no  univer- 
sities in  the  modem  sense  of  the  word.'  With  the  rise  of  prof  essional 
schools  of  theology,  law,  and  medicine,  most  of  which  were  outgrowths 
of  colleges  already  established,  American  institutions  began  to  approach 
university  organization.  The  name  "university"  came  also  into  com- 
mon use  to  designate  an  institution  composed  of  a  college  and  one  or 
more  professional  schools  each  under  the  control  of  a  separate  faculty. 

Schools  of  dentistry,  of  various  branches  of  engineering,  of  agriculture, 
of  veterinary  medicine,  etc.,  are  now  frequently  included  in  a  single 
university.  The  University  of  California,  for  instance,  has  19  such 
schools  or  divisions;  the  University  of  Chicago,  10;  the  University  of 
Illinois,  13;  the  University  of  Michigan,  8.  As  each  new  profession 
develops,  a  special  division  designed  to  give  the  training  requisite  for 
it  is  added  to  the  university.  In  this  manner,  schools  or  colleges  of 
commerce,  of  business  administration,  of  domestic  science,  of  ceramics, 
and  of  journalism  have  recently  been  established  at  a  number  of  the 
larger  universities.  The  process  will  undoubtedly  continue  with  the 
further  multiplication  of  the  professions. 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  TYPICAL  UNIVERSITY. 

THE   COLLEGE   OF   ARTS   AND    SCIENCES. 

The  core  of  every  university,  except  one;  is  the  college,  variously 
called  the  college  of  arts  and  sciences,  the  college  of  letters,  the  col- 
lege of  liberal  arts,  etc.  Whatever  its  name,  its  scope  and  character 
are  everywhere  approximately  the  same.  It  offers  to  graduates  of 
secondary  schools  a  four-year  course  of  study,  leading  usually  to  the 
degree  of  bachelor  of  arts  or  bachelor  of  science,  or  some  other  bacca- 
laureate degree.  Generally  the  work  is  in  part  prescribed  according  to 
one  of  two  methods.  Certain  subjects,  such  as  English,  one  or  more 
modem  languages,  Latin,  a  science,  history,  and  mathematics,  are  re- 
quired of  all  students;  or  the  courses  are  arranged  in  groups  centering 
about  a  single  subject,  and  each  student  may  choose  the  group  which 
best  suits  his  individual  tastes  and  purposes.  In  either  case,  a  consid- 
erable portion  of  his  course  is  elective;  i.  e.,  he  may  select  at  will  from 
the  subjects  offered  by  the  college  enough  to  make  up  the  number  of 
courses  required  for  graduation. 

Collegiate  instruction  is  carried  on  by  means  of  lectures,  recitations, 
discussions,  laboratory  practice,  and  various  kinds  of  written  exercises. 
In  the  work  of  the  first  two  years  and  in  the  elementary  courses  in  all 
subjects  it  has  a  tendency  to  be  somewhat  formal.  The  instructors 
assign  definite  tasks  at  each  meeting  of  the  class:  A  certain  portion 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN    THE   UNITED   STATES.  9 

of  the  subject  is  to  be  mastered,  a  prescribed  laboratory  experiment  is 
to  be  performed,  a  theme  written  on  a  specified  subject,  or  a  fixed  num- 
ber of  pages  read.  At  a  subsequent  meeting  students  are  tested  on  the 
assignment.  In  the  later  years  of  the  course  there  is  less  formal  pre- 
scription, and  the  student  is  thrown  as  far  as  possible  on  his  own  re- 
sources.    His  knowledge  is  tested  by  periodic  examinations. 

Because  of  the  long  period  devoted  to  elementary  and  secondary 
training  American  college  students  are  generally  older  than  students 
of  other  countries  who  have  reached  the  same  stage  of  academic  ad- 
vancement. The  avarage  age  of  entrance  to  American  colleges  is  be- 
tween 1 8  and  19  years,  the  average  age  of  graduation  between  22  and  23. 
A  few  .colleges,  however,  allow  students  to  complete  the  course  in  three 
years  by  taking  extra  work. 

THE  COLLEGE  OR   SCHOOL   OF  ENGINEERING. 

Coordinate  with  the  college  of  arts  and  sciences  is  the  school  or  col- 
lege of  applied  science  or  engineering.  This  offers  to  graduates  of  sec- 
ondary schools  a  four-year  course  leading  to  the  degree  of  B.  S.  in  some 
division  of  engineering,  e.  g.,  civil,  mechanical,  mining,  metallurgical, 
electrical,  hydraulic,  architectural,  chemical,  and  sanitary  engineering. 
In  some  institutions  work  in  these  various  branches  is  organized  in  sep- 
arate schools,  e.  g.,  school  of  mining  engineering,  school  of  civil  engineering. 
The  course  of  study  for  the  first  year  is  frequently  uniform  for  students 
in  all  branches  of  engineering;  indeed,  the  present  tendency  is  toward 
a  still  greater  measure  of  uniformity  in  the  early  years,  followed  by 
specialization  in  the  last  year  or  the  last  two  years. 

The  school  or  college  of  engineering  is,  in  the  scheme  of  American 
education,  an  undergraduate  division  coordinate  with  the  college  of  lib- 
eral arts,  admitting  students  with  the  same  preparation  and  giving 
its  graduates  the  bachelor's  degree.  It  is,  nevertheless,  in  spirit  and 
tendency,  a  professional  school,  fitting  young  men  for  the  immediate 
practice  of  their  professions  as  a  means  of  livihood.  This  fact  affects 
the  college  of  engineering  in  two  ways.  In  the  first  place,  its  efficiency 
as  a  training  school  is  constantly  tested  by  the  success  of  its  graduates 
in  actual  professional  work.  It  suffers  the  consequences  without  delay 
if  its  standards  are  not  kept  high.  The  college  of  liberal  arts,  whose 
purpose  is  to  give  general  culture,  is  subjected  to  no  such  test. 

Secondly,  and  as  a  result  of  its  professional  obligations,  the  work  of 
the  engineering  school  is,  for  the  most  part,  more  concrete  and  prac- 
tical than  that  of  the  college  of  liberal  arts.  Not  only  in  the  extensive 
well-equipped  laboratories  and  machine  shops  of  the  university  itself, 
but  in  shops  and  factories  of  industrial  organizations  and  in  the  field, 
the  engineer  in  training  is  given  an  opportunity  to  perform  those  opera- 
tions by  which  he  may  later  earn  his  living. 
14899—22 2 


lO        ORGANIZATION    OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED    STATES. 

Recently  a  tendency  to  lengthen  the  period  of  preparation  for  the 
profession'  of  engineering  has  manifested  itself.  Several  leading  uni- 
versities now  offer  five  and  six  year  courses  in  the  various  engineering 
branches.  Five-year  courses,  which  are  the  commoner,  include  either 
a  considerable  amount  of  work  in  the  college  of  arts  and  sciences  designed 
to  broaden  the  student's  cultural  training  or  a  more  extended  specializa- 
tion in  the  branch  of  engineering  which  the  student  has  chosen.  The 
degrees  of  K.  K.,  M.  E.,  C.  E.,  A.  E.,  and  Arch,  are  generally  awarded  at 
the  end  of  these  more  highly  specialized  courses.  Such  degrees  rank 
higher  than  the  degree  of  B.  S. 

Postgraduate  work  leading  to  the  degrees  of  M.  S.,  Ph.  D.,  and  vSc.  D. 
in  the  engineering  sciences  is  now  given  also  at  several  of  the  foremost 
universities. 

THE   COI^LEGE   OR   SCHOOL  OF   AGRICULTURE. 

In  18^62  the  United  States  Congress,  under  the  Morrill  Act,  made  to 
each  State  grants  of  public  lands,  the  proceeds  from  the  sale  of  which 
were  to  form  a  fund  for  the  maintenance  of  colleges  of  agriculture  and 
the  mechanic  arts.  Later  acts  provided  for  annual  appropriations  by 
the  Federal  Government  for  the  support  of  these  institutions  and  for 
the  promotion  of  agricultural  research  and  demonstration.  In  the 
57  years  since  the  passage  of  the  original  act  these  so-called  land-grant 
colleges  have  become  among  the  most  important  agencies  for  training  in 
the  technical  professions.  In  a  number  of  States  the  land  grant  made 
possible  the  foundation  of  a  State  university,  and  the  State  universities 
of  20  States  are  now  legally  designated  land-grant  colleges. 

The  system  of  agricultural  education  in  the  United  States  has  grown 
to  be  very  comprehensive  and  exceedingly  complex.  Every  State  main- 
tains a  college  of  agriculture  and  mechanic  arts,  in  some  cases  in  con- 
nection with  the  State  university,  in  other  cases  as  independent  institu- 
tions. All  of  these  institutions  maintain  various  specialized  four-year 
curricula  leading  to  the  bachelor's  degree  in  agriculture.  The  most  com- 
mon curricula  are  in  fields  of  agronomy,  horticulture,  animal  husbandry, 
dairy  husbandry,  agricultural  engineering,  and  agricultural  education. 
Practically  every  institution  also  offers  the  master's  degree  and  many  the 
doctor's  degree  in  agriculture  or  agricultural  education. 

The  influence  of  these  colleges  is  extended  to  the  general  public  through 
the  extension  service  maintained  cooperatively  by  the  college,  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture,  and  the  county.  Through  the  exten- 
sion workers  the  message  of  the  agricultural  college,  experiment  stations, 
and  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  is  carried  directly  to 
the  farmers  and  to  their  children,  who  may  or  may  not  be  enrolled  in 
the  public  elementary  or  secondary  schools. 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.         I  I 

Agriculture  in  the  secondary  schools  is  predominantly  of  the  voca- 
tional type,  administered  under  the  Smith-Hughes  Act  as  a  cooperative 
program  between  the  Federal  Board  for  Vocational  Education  and  the 
State  board  for  vocational  education. 

The  typical  secondary  school  program  involves  four  years  of  instruc- 
tion in  vocational  agriculture.  The  usual  organization  of  the  curriculum 
provides  for  three  units  (the  unit  is  a  recitation  period  of  45  minutes 
daily  for  a  period  of  26  weeks)  of  mathematics,  three  units  of  social  sci- 
ence, three  units  of  science,  four  units  of  vocational  agriculture,  and  four 
units  of  English.  A  typical  course  in  vocational  agriculture  provides 
one  unit  of  farm  crops,  one  unit  of  farm  animals,  one-half  unit  of  horti- 
culture, one-half  unit  of  dairying,  one-half  unit  of  farm  management, 
and  one-half  unit  of  farm  mechanics. 

In  actual  practice  the  tendency  is  to  break  away  from  subject  organ- 
ization and  to  organize  teaching  about  individual  farm  enterprises  as  the 
unit,  making  the  jobs  in  actual  carrying  out  of  the  enterprise  the  basis  of 
study.  Under  such  organization  the  development  of  the  home  project 
becomes  the  guiding  factor  in  instruction,  and  such  course  units  as  swine 
production,  poultry  production,  corn  production,  or  cotton  production 
displace  farm  crops  and  animal  husbandry  as  course  units.  Farm  shop- 
work,  farm  management,  and  marketing  are  taught  in  relation  to  a  par- 
ticular enterprise. 

Every  State  has  accepted  the  provisions  of  the  Smith-Hughes  Act, 
and  Smith-Hughes  departments  of  vocational  agriculture  are  common  in 
high  schools,  both  rural  and  urban,  of  the  country. 

In  the  elementary  schools  agriculture  is  not  so  well  organized,  though 
required  by  law  in  1 7  States  and  prescribed  in  the  State  course  of  study  in 
II  other  States.  Agriculture  is  further  taught  in  local  school  systems 
in  sections  of  practically  every  State  in  the  Union. 

A  few  States  have  rather  well-developed  programs  of  nature-study 
agriculture  throughout  the  eight  elementary  school  grades.  The  ma- 
jority of  States,  however,  where  agriculture  is  taught  in  the  elementary 
schools  have  introduced  the  subject  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades 
only. 

The  tendency  in  method  is  to  carry  the  home-project  method  down  to 
the  elementary  school  and  to  develop  the  course  through  selected 
"  junior"  projects.  The  prevocational  aim,  rather  than  the  vocational, 
is  dominant. 

THE   COLLEGE   OR   SCHOOL   OF   VETERINARY    MEDICINE. 

Several  prominent  universities  and  colleges  of  agriculture  and  mechanic 
arts  now  maintain  schools  of  veterinary  medicine,  which  provide  instruc- 
tion in  the  causes  and  treatment  of  animal  diseases  and  in  the  principles 
of  sanitary  science  as  applied  to  live  stock.     The  large  proportion  of 


12         ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

the  Nation's  wealth  invested  in  Hve  stock,  the  dependence  of  agriculture 
upon  it,  and  the  influence  of  certain  animal  diseases,  notably  tubercu- 
losis, upon  the  health  of  the  community  give  special  importance  to  the 
profession  of  veterinary  medicine. 

The  typical  college  of  veterinary  medicine  offers  to  graduates  of  a 
secondary  school  a  three-year  course  leading  to  the  degree  of  D.  V.  M. 
or  V.  M.  D.  The  course  itself  is  closely  prescribed.  It  combines  instruc- 
tion in  the  fundamental  medical  sciences — chemistry,  anatomy,  and 
physiology — with  such  special  branches  as  animal  pathology,  surgery, 
veterinary  and  medicine.  Clinical  instruction  is  given  in  the  veterinary 
hospitals  connected  with  the  school.  There  is  generally  provision  also 
for  graduate  work  in  special  branches  of  veterinary  science. 

THE   COI^I^EGE   OR   SCHOOI,   OF   COMMERCE. 

Among  the  more  recent  additions  to  American  universities  are  the 
schools  or  colleges  of  commerce  or  business  administration.  The  typical 
college  of  commerce  offers  to  graduates  of  secondary  schools  a  four-year 
course  leading  to  the  degree  of  B.  S.  or  A.  B.  The  first  part  of  the  course 
is  largely  devoted  to  such  fundamental  subjects  as  mathematics,  English, 
natural  sciences,  modem  foreign  languages,  history,  and  economics. 
These  are  followed  in  the  last  two  years  by  the  broader  technical  subjects 
designed  to  give  general  preparation  for  business  life,  such  as  various 
phases  of  business  administration,  commercial  law,  and  advanced 
economics. 

THE   COil^EGE   OR   SCHOOly   OF  JOURNALISM. 

Schools  of  journalism  are  also  among  the  newer  developments  at 
several  universities.  These  offer  to  graduates  of  secondary  schools  a 
four-year  course  leading  to  the  bachelor's  degree  (A.  B.,  B.  Litt.,  B.  J.) . 
The  foundation  of  the  work  in  the  schools  of  journalism  is  largely  com- 
posed of  courses  in  the  social  sciences  and  English,  which  are  designed 
to  familiarize  the  student  with  present  economic  and  social  conditions 
and  to  develop  his  power  of  written  expression.  These  courses  cover 
about  two  years  and  are  followed  by  technical  instruction  in  the  methods 
of  modem  journalism.  This  includes  actual  practice  in  reporting,  inter- 
viewing, and  newspaper  editing.  The  aim  of  all  these  schools  is  voiced 
in  the  official  announcement  of  the  school  of  journalism  of  Columbia 
University.  It  is  "to  make  better  journalists,  who  will  make  better 
newspapers,  which  will  better  serve  the  public." 

THE   COlvIyEGE   OR   SCHOOlv   OF   PHARMACY. 

The  schools  of  pharmacy,  which  are  now  included  in  most  of  the 
larger  universities,  usually  offer  courses  leading  to  three  different  de- 
grees— Ph.  G.,  Ph.  C,  and  B.  S.  in  Pharmacy  or  Phar.  B.     The  entrance 


ORGANIZATION   OF  EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.         1 3 

requirements  are  substantially  the  same  as  for  those  schools  and  depart- 
ments already  described.  The  degree  of  Ph.  G.  (graduate  in  pharmacy) 
is  conferred  at  the  end  of  a  two-year  course,  consisting  chiefly  of  instruc- 
tion in  botany,  analytical  chemistry,  and  pharmacy.  Several  States 
demand  as  a  prerequisite  for  a  license  to  practice  the  profession  of  phar- 
macist either  a  certain  amount  of  practical  experience  in  a  place  where 
drugs  and  medicines  are  compounded  or  dispensed  or  a  course  of  instruc- 
tion in  a  school  of  pharmacy.  Courses  in  pharmacy  are  adjusted  to 
meet  these  requirements. 

The  course  leading  to  the  degree  of  Ph.  C.  (pharmaceutical  chemist) 
is  three  years  in  length.  It  is  "designed  more  especially  for  those  who 
wish  to  enter  the  commercial  field  of  pharmaceutical  chemistry  or  food 
and  drug  analysis."  More  advanced  instruction  in  pharmacy  is  given, 
together  with  such  general  studies  as  sciences  and  foreign  languages. 

The  four-year  course  leading  to  the  degree  of  B.  S.  in  Pharmacy  in- 
cludes a  combination  of  cultural  studies  and  the  advanced  work  in 
pharmacy  taken  by  the  candidates  for  the  degree  of  Ph.  C. 

Opportunities  for  specialized  graduate  study  and  research  in  some 
department  of  pharmacy  are  frequently  offered  in  the  graduate  schools 
of  leading  universities. 

THE   COLLEGE   OR  SCHOOIv  OF  DENTISTRY. 

The  organization  of  29  American  universities  and  colleges  now  includes 
a  school  of  dentistry,  which  offers  to  graduates  of  secondary  schools  a 
three-year  course  leading  to  the  degree  of  D.  D.  S.  or  D.  M.  D.  The 
curriculum  provides  first  for  a  study  of  those  elementary  scientific  sub- 
jects which  form  the  groundwork  of  training  in  medicine:  Anatomy, 
chemistry,  bacteriology,  physiology,  and  pathology.  Instruction  accom- 
panied by  extended  clinical  and  laboratory  practice  in  operative  and 
prosthetic  dentistry  follows.  The  clinics  of  the  best  American  dental 
schools  furnish  each  student  ample  opportunity  for  practice  in  all  branches 
of  dentistry. 

Although  dentistry  is  a  separate  profession,  and  although  training  for 
it  is  quite  fittingly  carried  on  in  a  special  professional  school,  neverthe- 
less there  is  growing  recognition  of  the  fact  that  it  is  a  branch  of  medical 
science.  There  has  arisen  in  consequence  a  tendency  to  emphasize  the 
affiliation  of  dental  and  medical  education.  Seven  dental  schools  are 
now  departments  of  medical  schools.  One  State  has  already  passed  a 
law'  requiring  that  hereafter  all  practitioners  of  dentistry  shall  hold  a 
medical  degree.  While  there  seems  to  be  no  immediate  prospect  that 
other  States  will  take  the  same  radical  action,  there  is  a  very  decided 
trend  of  opinion  in  the  direction  of  lengthening  the  course  in  dentistry 
from  three  to  four  years.  A  number  of  dental  schools  are  meeting  this 
demand  for  further  scientific  training  by  offering  postgraduate  courses 
14899—22 3 


14         ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES. 

Open  to  holders  of  degrees  in  dentistry  and  to  others  who  have  had 
practical  experience. 

It  is  appropriate  to  call  attention  to  the  excellence  of  American  dental 
schools  and  clinics.  The  conspicuous  success  of  American  practitioners 
of  dentistry  is  without  doubt  largely  due  to  the  splendid  facilities  for 
training  in  the  profession  that  have  been  developed  in  the  United  States. 

THE   COI^I^EGE   OR   SCHOOIy  OF   EDUCATION. 

Among  the  important  contributions  which  the  United  States  has  made 
to  professional  training  may  be  counted  the  creation  of  special  schools 
of  education.  Normal  schools  organized  principally  for  the  training  of 
elementary-school  teachers  have  existed  for  a  long  time.  They  owe  their 
origin  to  European  experiments  in  the  same  direction.  But  the  schools 
of  education  whose  aim  is  to  prepare  prospective  high-school  teachers> 
school  principals,  supervisors,  and  superintendents  of  city  school  systems 
are  relatively  new  and  distinctly  American  institutions.  Their  estab- 
lishment has  come  about  because  of  the  evident  need  of  trained  teachers 
and  directing  officers  to  carry  on  the  work  of  public  secondary  education 
and  the  administration  of  school  systems.  With  a  few  exceptions  they 
have  attained  most  vigorous  growth  in  the  States  where  the  State  uni- 
versity occupies  a  position  of  educational  leadership. 

The  typical  school  of  education  offers  to  graduates  of  secondary  schools 
a  four-year  course  leading  to  the  bachelor's  degree.  The  course  usually 
combines  three  distinct  elements:  General  training  in  the  arts  and  sci- 
ences, specialization  in  one  or  two  subjects  which  the  candidate  proposes 
to  teach  later,  and  instruction  in  the  theory  and  practice  of  teaching. 

Among  the  strictly  professional  subjects  emphasis  is  laid  on  educa- 
tional psychology,  the  history  and  philosophy  of  education,  and  the 
organization  and  management  of  schools.  The  best-equipped  schools  of 
education  now  provide  opportunities  also  for  students  to  observe  skillful 
teaching  and  for  practice  teaching  under  supervision. 

There  is  a  marked  tendency  toward  extending  the  scholastic  range  of 
schools  of  education,  and  consequently  increasing  the  amount  of  pro- 
fessional training  demanded  of  secondary-school  teachers.  The  addition 
of  a  fifth  year  to  the  course  in  education  is  a  manifestation  of  this  ten- 
dency. At  the  completion  of  the  longer  course,  the  degree  of  A.  M.  is 
conferred.  In  this  way  the  school  of  education  is  gradually  merging  into 
the  graduate  school.  It  will  probably  not  be  long  before  the  general 
cultural  and  informational  subjects  will  be  relegated  to  the  college  of 
letters,  and  the  school  of  education  will  advance  to  the  rank  of  a  graduate 
school  offering  purely  professional  instruction  to  college  graduates. 
Graduate  courses  in  education  leading  to  the  degree  of  doctor  of  phi- 
losophy are  now  commonly  offered  by  the  graduate  departments  of  the 
best  universities. 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.         1 5 
THE   COLLEGE  OR  SCHOOL  OF   LAW. 

English  and  American  legal  systems  differ  radically  from  those  of  most 
other  nations.  Because  of  this  fact  foreign  students  will  probably  not 
be  attracted  in  any  large  numbers  to  American  law  schools  for  the  pur- 
pose of  fitting  themselves  for  the  immediate  practice  of  their  profession 
at  home.  Nevertheless  there  is  a  growing  conviction  among  lawyers 
and  jurists  that  a  knowledge  both  of  English  common  law  and  the  code 
systems  of  continental  Europe  and  Latin  America  is  very  valuable  to 
the  legal  practitioner  of  any  country.  The  spirit  and  motives  of  a  country 
are  reflected  in  its  laws.  An  acquaintance  with  the  latter  tends  to 
broaden  international  sympathies.  It  is  for  this  reason,  as  well  as  to 
complete  the  account  of  the  component  parts  of  the  American  university, 
that  the  law  school  is  mentioned  here. 

THE  SCHOOL  OR   COLLEGE  OF   MEDICINE. 

No  other  professional  schools  connected  with  American  universities 
have  made  such  noteworthy  and  gratifying  advances  within  recent 
years  as  the  schools  of  medicine.  There  have  been  three  conspicuous 
lines  of  progress:  The  growth  of  laboratory  equipment  through  liberal 
State  appropriations  and  private  benefactions,  the  increase  in  hospital 
facilities,  and  the  raising  of  standards  of  admission.  As  a  result  of  these 
developments  the  best  medical  schools  of  the  United  States  are  now 
unsurpassed  in  physical  equipment  and  demand  as  thorough  prepara- 
tion for  entrance  and  graduation  as  do  those  of  other  leading  nations. 

The  high  standards  recommended  by  the  American  Medical  Asso- 
ciation and  put  into  practice  by  the  more  progressive  schools  of  medi- 
cine have  been  rendered  permanent  by  the  subsequent  action  of  numer- 
ous State  licensing  boards  which  fix  the  educational  preparation  to  be 
required  of  practitioners  of  medicine  in  their  respective  States.  Medical 
education  has  therefore  attained  a  status  consonant  with  the  antiquity 
and  importance  of  the  profession. 

As  a  division  of  the  university  the  medical  school  now  ranks  with 
the  schools  devoted  to  training  for  the  other  traditional  callings. 

The  typical  medical  schools  of  the  best  universities  require  for  entrance 
a  four-year  high-school  course,  including  two  years  of  Latin,  and  two 
years  of  college  work,  which  must  include  at  least  a  year  each  of  physics, 
chemistry,  and  biology,  and  sufficient  German  and  French  to  insure  a 
reading  knowledge  of  those  languages.  To  such  students  the  medical 
school  offers  a  four-year  course,  consisting  of  laboratory,  didactic,  and 
clinical  instruction  in  the  theory  and  practice  of  medicine,  and  leading 
to  the  degree  of  M.  D.  Associated  with  all  high-grade  medical  schools 
are  hospitals,  in  which  medical  students  study  at  first  hand  diseases 
and  their  treatment  and  in  which  they  serve  as  internes. 


1 6        ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES. 

Included  in  the  "ideal  standard"  set  up  by  the  American  Medical 
Association  is  the  recommendation  that  a  fifth  year  be  added  to  the 
medical  course,  in  which  the  student  shall  act  as  interne  in  a  hospital. 
This  recommendation  has  already  been  adopted  by  several  of  the  lead- 
ing medical  schools  of  the  country.  Others,  while  not  including  , the 
year's  internship  in  the  medical  course,  provide  ample  facilities  for  their 
graduates  to  secure  this  privilege. 

A  recent  development  in  medical  education  has  been  the  establish- 
ment of  postgraduate  courses  in  medicine  devoted  chiefly  to  advanced 
study  and  research.  As  yet  there  has  been  no  general  organization  of 
these  courses  into  curricula  leading  to  higher  medical  degrees.  Attention 
should  be  called,  however,  to  one  higher  medical  degree  which  has 
already  gained  recognition.  This  is  doctor  of  public  health.  The 
degree  is  conferred  upon  holders  of  the  degree  of  M.  D.  after  one  or 
two  years  of  postgraduate, study  devoted  to  problems  of  sanitation  and 
community  diseases  and  to  special  research. 

Most  large  universities  now  provide  for  a  six  or  seven  year  course, 
combining  work  in  the  department  of  arts  and  sciences  with  the  course 
in  medicine  and  leading  to  the  two  degrees  A.  B.  (or  B.  S.)  and  M.  D. 

Students  from  tropical  countries  will  be  especially  interested  in  the 
very  excellent  courses  in  tropical  medicine  offered  by  the  medical  schools 
of  the  Tulane  University  of  Louisiana  and  Harvard  University. 

THE   GRADUATE   SCHOOL. 

The  capstone  of  the  American  university  is  the  graduate  school  of  arts 
and  sciences.  Originally  planned  to  correspond  to  the  faculty  of  phi- 
losophy of  the  German  university  and  offering  instruction  merely  in  pure 
science  and  the  humanities,  the  graduate  school  has  far  outgrown  the  first 
conception  of  its  function.  The  graduate  school  of  the  large  American 
university  now  usually  organizes  into  one  administrative  unit  all  the 
advanced  teaching  and  all  the  facilities  for  original  research  provided  by 
the  university  in  any  of  its  departments.  Under  this  arrangement  holders 
of  the  bachelor's  degree  who  desire  to  specialize,  for  example,  in  engi- 
neering, in  medical  science,  or  in  pharmacy,  as  well  as  in  pure  science  and 
the  humanities,  enter  the  graduate  school. 

The  American  graduate  school  has  a  double  aim.  Chronologically, 
the  first  is  to  teach  to  properly  prepared  students  the  most  advanced  and 
specialized  phases  of  the  subjects  offered  by  the  university.  More 
important,  however,  if  second  in  point  of  development,  is  its  obligation 
to  increase  the  sum  of  human  knowledge.  Research  is  the  lifeblood  of 
the  graduate  school.  The  graduate  school  is  differentiated  from  the 
ordinary  professional  schools  by  being  devoted  to  the  principle  of  research. 
As  a  rule,  schools  of  medicine  and  engineering,  for  instance,  aim  primarily 
to  pass  on  to  the  student  a  body  of  knowledge  which  is  already  organized 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.         1 7 

and  of  accepted  professional  value,  and  so  to  train  practitioners  of  already 
standardized  professions.  The  graduate  school  places  first  emphasis 
upon  the  advancement  of  learning.  Its  teachers  are  expected  to  be 
actively  engaged  in  extending  the  boundaries  of  knowledge  and  to  direct 
students  in  the  conduct  of  investigations.  The  vitality  of  the  graduate 
school  is  properly  judged  by  the  amount  and  quality  of  its  creative  output. 

Most  graduate  schools  have  been  established  within  25  years.  National 
appreciation  of  the  value  of  research,  which  has  made  this  last  expansion 
of  the  university  possible,  is  hardly  1 5  years  old ;  yet  the  enrollment  in 
graduate  courses  in  the  United  States  has  increased  from  4,340  in  1893 
to  7,911  in  1903,  to  14,406  in  1918,  and  to  15,612  in  1920. 

It  is  therefore  safe  to  say  that  the  students  from  abroad  will  now  find 
in  the  graduate  schools  of  the  foremost  American  universities  opportu- 
nities for  special  training  and  for  research  broadly  equivalent  to  those 
provided  by  the  faculties  of  philosophy  and  the  scientific  institutes  of  the 
universities  of  Europe.  Such  students  will  naturally  seek  those  institu- 
tions which  offer  the  best  facilities  and  which  possess  the  most  eminent 
teachers  in  the  particular  lines  in  which  they  are  interested. 

A  subordinate  function  of  the  graduate  school  has  been  the  training 
of  teachers  for  higher  institutions.  Indeed,  it  is  now  customary  for 
appointing  authorities  to  demand  of  candidates  for  higher  teaching  posi- 
tions a  more  or  less  extended  period  of  graduate  study. 

The  typical  American  graduate  school  admits  as  students  only  those 
who  hold  a  bachelor's  degree  from  a  college  or  university  of  recognized 
standing.  It  confers  two  orders  of  degrees,  the  master's  degrees  and 
the  doctor's  degrees. 

To  secure  a  master's  degree  one  year  of  postgraduate  study  devoted 
as  a  rule  to  not  more  than  three  subjects,  one  of  which,  called  the  major 
subject,  receives  the  bulk  of  the  student's  attention,  is  usually  required. 
Many  universities  also  demand  a  thesis  embodying  the  results  of  a  small 
piece  of  research. 

The  minimum  period  of  postgraduate  study  for  a  doctor's  degree  is 
usually  three  years.  The  time  spent  and  the  number  of  courses  taken, 
however,  are  of  secondary  importance.  To  receive  the  degree  it  is 
necessary  that  the  candidate  not  only  demonstrate  in  examination  his 
mastery  of  his  special  field  but  also  by  means  of  a  dissertation  or  thesis 
make  an  original  contribution  to  knowledge  in  that  field.  Most  univer- 
sities require  the  dissertation  to  be  published.  The  examinations  are 
both  written  and  oral.  In  fact,  the  requirements  for  the  American  degree 
of  doctor  of  philosophy  parallel  closely  those  proposed  by  the  German 
universities  for  the  same  degree.  But  American  universities  have 
recently  attempted  to  demand  of  candidates  for  the  degree  a  somewhat 
longer  scholarly  preparation  and  a  more  substantial  thesis. 


1 8        ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION    IN  THE   UNITED   STATES. 
INDEPENDENT  TECHNICAL  AND  PROFESSIONAL  SCHOOLS. 

In  addition  to  the  great  universities  giving  instruction  in  practically 
all  the  departments  of  knowledge  and  including  in  their  organization  all 
types  of  higher  professional  schools,  there  are  numerous  other  institu- 
tions of  less  complex  organization.  In  fact,  as  has  already  been  stated, 
the  university  is  a  comparatively  recent  creation.  Many  of  these  other 
schools,  colleges,  and  institutes  antedate  the  origin  of  universities.  It 
is  also  true  that  many  kinds  of  professional  training  can  be  quite  as 
successfully  and  often  as  economically  carried  on  in  separate  institu- 
tions established  for  that  purpose  alone.  Some  of  the  foremost  training 
schools  for  engineering,  medicine,  dentistry,  law,  theology,  and  other 
callings  are  independent  institutions  not  connected  with  any  university. 

The  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,  for  example,  offers  courses 
in  the  various  branches  of  engineering  and  applied  science.  Rensselaer 
Polytechnic  Institute  is  devoted  chiefly  to  civil,  electrical,  mechanical, 
and  chemical  engineering.  Stevens  Institute  of  Technology  gives  only 
courses  in  mechanical  engineering.  The  College  of  Physicians  and 
Surgeons  in  Baltimore  and  Jefferson  Medical  School  of  Philadelphia  are 
not  affiliated  with  universities.  Among  theological  schools  the  majority 
are  independent  institutions,  as,  for  example,  the  Newton  Theological 
Institution  (Baptist),  the  Theological  Seminary  of  the  General  Synod  of 
the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  in  the  United  States,  and  nearly  all 
Catholic  theological  seminaries.  Several  States  have  established  from 
the  proceeds  of  the  land  grants  special  colleges  of  agriculture  and 
mechanic  arts  separate  from  the  State  university,  as,  for  example, 
the  Kansas  State  Agricultural  College,  the  Iowa  State  College  of  Agri- 
culture and  Mechanic  Arts. 

In  range  and  content  the  courses  given  at  these  independent  institu- 
tions are  similar  to  those  of  the  corresponding  professional  divisions 
of  the  large  universities.  Some  of  the  schools  of  engineering,  indeed, 
have  become  famous  throughout  the  world  for  the  high  excellence  of 
the  work  done  in  one  or  more  departments. 

INDEPENDENT  AND  DENOMINATIONAL  COLLEGES. 

Numerically  the  most  important  of  the  institutions  not  included  in 
the  organization  of  some  university  are  the  independent  colleges  offering 
courses  in  arts  and  sciences,  the  majority  of  which  confer  the  bachelor's 
degree.  They  present  a  wide  variety  of  types  and  almost  as  great  a 
variety  of  scholastic  standards;  nevertheless,  certain  generalizations  can 
be  rnade  concerning  them. 

As  a  rule  the  independent  colleges  give  instruction  in  a  more  limited 
range  of  subjects  than  are  open  to  candidates  for  bachelor's  degrees 
at  the  larger  universities.  For  instance,  as  against  the  45  branches 
which  the  Harvard  undergraduate  may  select,  Carleton  -College  offers 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.         1 9 

work  in  the  following:  Astronomy,  Bible,  biology,  chemistry,  economics, 
education,  English,  German,  geology,  Greek,  Hebrew,  history,  Latin, 
mathematics,  music,  philosophy,  physical  education,  physics,  political 
science,  public  speaking,  Romance  languages,  Scandinavian  languages, 
sociology.  Williams  College  in  the  following:  Art,  astronomy,  biology, 
chemistry,  economics,  English,  geology,  German,  government  and  po- 
litical science,  Greek,  history,  Latin,  mathematics,  military  art,  philos- 
ophy, physics,  physiology  and  hygiene,  public  speaking,  religion,  Romance 
languages..  Reed  College  in  the  following:  Biology,  chemistry,  classical 
languages,  economics,  education,  English,  Germanic  languages,  Greek, 
history  and  political  science,  Latin,  mathematics,  philosophy,  physics, 
psychology,  Romance  languages,  sociology. 

The  curricula  of  these  institutions,  then,  are  more  nearly  comparable 
to  those  of  the  French  lycee  and  the  German  gymnasium  and  Oberreal- 
schule,  most  of  the  studies  included  being  sanctioned  by  age-long  tradi- 
tion as  appropriate  training  for  the  first  degree  in  arts. 

The  test  of  the  excellence  of  a  college,  however,  is  not  the  multiplicity 
of  its  offerings,  but  the  quality  of  work  done.  The  stronger  colleges, 
perhaps  a  quarter  of  the  whole  number,  enforce  a  standard  of  accom- 
plishment for  the  bachelor's  degree  every  whit  as  high  as  that  maintained 
by  the  best  universities.  The  universities  themselves  readily  concede 
this.  They  accept  for  advanced  study  the  holders  of  degrees  from  these 
colleges  on  the  same  terms  as  their  own  graduates.  The  foreign  stu- 
dent need  have  no  hesitation,  therefore,  in  choosing  an  independent  col- 
lege rather  than  the  collegiate  division  of  some  larger  university  as  the 
institution  in  which  to  secure  the  A.  B.  or  B.  S.,  provided  he  assures  him- 
self in  advance  that  the  degrees  of  the  college  of  his  choice  are  valid  edu- 
cational currency.  Among  the  colleges  recognized  by  the  larger  univer- 
sities are,  on  the  one  hand,  some  which  offer  instruction  only  in  the  rather 
circumscribed  group  of  studies  which  have  for  generations  formed  the 
basis  of  the  A.  B.  course,  and,  on  the  other,  institutions  which  more 
nearly  approximate  the  scope  of  university  undergraduate  departments. 

Probably  the  most  striking  difference  between  the  independent  colleges 
and  the  universities  is  the  difference  in  size,  which  also  involves  a  profound 
difference  in  the  institutional  life.  The  independent  college  is  commonly 
known  as  the  small  college,  for  the  reason  that  its  students  usually  number 
from  I  GO  to  500.  Universities  of  the  type  described  frequently  enroll 
from  1 ,000  to  5,000  students.  The  foreign  observer  may  be  led  to  wonder 
why  it  is  that  small  colleges  persist  and  multiply  in  a  country  so  liberally 
provided  with  large  institutions,  many  of  them  State  supported,  giving 
the  same  opportunities  for  general  education.  The  principal  reasons  are 
the  following : 

The  prime  mover  in  the  foundation  of  most  American  colleges  has 
been  some  religious  denomination.  The  college  so  founded  draws  chiefly 
children  of  members  of  its  denomination,  and  in  a  peculiar  sense  may  be 


20        ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

said  to  serve  the  denomination,  although  communicants  of  other  sects 
are,  as  a  rule,  freely  admitted.  Thus  there  are  Methodist  colleges,  Pres- 
byterian colleges,  Catholic  colleges,  Lutheran  colleges,  and  many  more. 
Those  who  believe  that  higher  education  must  not  only  be  imbued  with 
the  spirit  of  religion,  but  definitely  correlated  with  a  particular  religious 
doctrine,  and  interpreted  in  terms  of  that  doctrine,  generally  patronize  a 
college  of  the  desired  denominational  affiliation.  Many  denominations 
have  met  and  encouraged  this  tendency  by  establishing  colleges  all  over 
the  land,  wherever  the  denominational  membership  was  large  enough  to 
give  promise  of  support.  It  is  no  unusual  thing  to  find  several  colleges 
in  the  same  city  or  located  within  a  few  miles  of  one  another  in  country 
districts  each  serving  a  different  religious  constituency. 

The  typical  denominational  college  emphasizes  the  religious  life  and 
makes  a  special  effort  to  create  a  religious  atmosphere.  More  or  less  re- 
ligious instruction  generally  appears  in  the  curriculum.  Denominational 
religious  services  are  held  daily,  and  attendance  is  usually  required. 
Religious  associations  often  occupy  a  prominent  place  among  the  social 
organizations  which  claim  part  of  the  student's  leisure  hours.  It  will  be 
seen  that  the  denominational  college  makes  a  very  distinctive  contribu- 
tion to  American  higher  education.  The  State  university,  owing  to  the 
nature  of  its  support,  must  be  nonsectarian.  The  large  independent 
university,  no  matter  under  what  auspices  it  was  founded,  can  hardly 
have  such  complete  denominational  polarization.  Foreign  students  of 
strong  denominational  attachments  may  well  bear  these  facts  in  mind 
when  selecting  a  college. 

Neither  in  the  United  States  nor  in  other  countries  is  there  consensus 
of  opinion  as  to  the  extent  to  which  sectarian  influences  and  sectarian 
religious  teaching  should  enter  into  higher  education.  In  the  last  two 
decades  the  tendency  has  undoubtedly  been  toward  the  divorce  of  higher 
education  and  sectarianism,  a  tendency  stimulated  by  the  evident  success 
of  State  universities.  Consequently  the  sectarian  affliations  of  many  col- 
leges which  started  as  strictly  denominational  institutions  are  all  the 
time  growing  weaker.  Some  have  even  renounced  their  denominational 
connections  and  have  frankly  come  forth  as  nonsectarian  institutions. 
On  the  other  hand,  certain  denominational  colleges  have,  perhaps  by  way 
of  protest,  reaffirmed  still  more  vigorously  their  denominational  char- 
acter. Several  denominations  also  have  been  especially  active  in  found- 
ing new  institutions. 

The  college  is  coming  to  be  regarded  more  and  more  as  a  local  insti- 
tution. It  serves  a  larger  area  than  does  a  public  high  school,  but  still 
the  radius  from  which  it  draws  its  students  is  comparatively  short,  and 
is  becoming  annually  shorter.  This  is  a  second  reason  for  the  large 
number  of  independent  colleges.  The  number  of  persons  securing  col- 
lege training  in  proportion  to  the  total  population  has  recently  increased 
enormously. 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.        21 

A  third  reason  for  the  persistent  vitaUty  of  the  independent  college 
is  the  extraordinary  influence  it  has  had  on  the  life  and  ideals  of  the 
Nation.  The  American  college  graduate  generally  cherishes  the  memory 
of  his  "alma  mater"  with  a  loyalty  only  second  in  intensity  to  that 
which  he  bestows  on  his  family  and  friends.  He  is  on  all  occasions  her 
devoted  and  partisan  champion.  If  he  is  an  alumnus  of  a  small  college 
he  is  apt  to  attribute  to  its  influence  and  training  whatever  measure  of 
success  he  may  have  achieved.  This  generous  habit,  coupled  with  the 
fact  that  the  independent  colleges  actually  have  furnished  the  country 
with  a  surprisingly — one  might  almost  say  a  disproportionately — large 
number  of  the  national  leaders  in  politics,  in  the  professions,  and  in 
commerce',  has  served  to  intrench  the  small  college  in  the  regard  of  the 
people.  In  many  quarters  it  is  believed  to  be  the  peculiar  repository 
of  healthy  democracy,  lofty  ideals,  and  sound  intellectual  training.  In 
consequence,  it  enjoys  a  prestige  quite  equal  to  that  of  the  larger  uni- 
versities.    Apparently  it  will  long  continue  to  do  so. 

HIGHER  EDUCATION  OF  WOMEN. 

Substantially  all  of  the  facilities  for  advanced  and  professional  train- 
ing which  have  been  described  above  are  available  for  women.  Women 
seldom  select  certain  professions,  such  as  agriculture  and  engineering, 
from  the  nature  of  the  demands  which  these  callings  make  upon  physical 
strength.  On  the  other  hand,  increasingly  large  numbers  of  women  are 
engaging  in  law,  medicine,  dentistry,  teaching,  and  pursuing  advanced 
studies  in  the  arts  and  sciences. 

The  higher  education  of  women  is  carried  on  both  in  institutions  for 
the  female  sex  alone  and  in  colleges  and  universities  where  the  sexes  are 
educated  together.  In  the  East  coeducation,  as  it  is  called,  has  not  found 
general  favor.  The  older  colleges  and  the  college  departments  of  univer- 
sities in  this  section  of  the  country  are  usually  exclusively  for  men. 
Beside  them  numerous  colleges  for  women  have  been  established,  offer- 
ing courses  leading  to  the  bachelor's  and  in  some  cases,  even  to  the 
master's  and  doctor's  degrees.  In  general,  however,  the  older  universi- 
ties like  Harvard,  Yale,  and  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  while 
excluding  women  from  the  undergraduate  departments,  admit  them 
freely  to  graduate  schools. 

In  the  Middle  West  and  West  coeducation  is  the  accepted  educational 
policy.  Nearly  all  colleges  and  universities  are  open  in  all  departments 
to  women  on  the  same  terms  as  to  men.  In  particular,  the  State  uni- 
versities have  been  the  most  prominent  exponents  of  this  policy  and 
have  done  much  to  give  it  national  currency.  Special  supervision  of 
the  boarding  and  rooming  accommodations  of  the  women  and  a  certain 
amount  of  chaperonage  in  social  affairs  are  enforced.  Otherwise  per- 
fectly free  association  between  the  sexes  prevails.     The  policy  of  coedu- 


22         ORGANIZATION    OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

cation  has  proved  almost  universally  successful  and  is  now  indorsed  by 
the  great  majority  of  American  educators. 

The  extent  to  which  women  have  taken  advantage  of  the  higher 
educational  opportunities  is  indicated  by  the  following  figures:  Total 
enrollment  of  women  in  women's  colleges,  1893,  12,300;  1903,  16,744; 
1913,  19,142;  1916,  20,638;  1918,  25,495;  1920,  31,769.  Total  enroll- 
ment of  women  in  coeducational  institutions:  1893,  13,058;  1903,  26,990; 
1913.55,564;  1916,69,543;  1918,91,941;   1920,96,908. 

In  addition  to  the  coeducational  and  the  separate  method  of  the  edu- 
cation of  women  has  also  grown  up  a  method  which  has  been  denomi- 
nated the  coordinate  system.  It  represents  the  affiliation  of  a  college 
for  women  with  a  college  for  men.  Examples  of  this  type  of  manage- 
ment are  Barnard  College,  incorporated  in  the  educational  system  of 
Columbia  University;  Radcliffe  College,  affiliated  with  Harvard;  H. 
Sophie  Newcomb  Memorial  College,  affiliated  with  Tulane  University 
of  Louisiana;  College  for  Women,  affiliated  with  Western  Reserve 
University;  William  Smith  College,  affiliated  with  Hobart  College; 
Westhampton  College,  affiliated  with  Richmond  University;  Jackson 
College,  affiliated  with  Tufts  College;  and  the  Women's  College,  Brown 
University.  The  academic  relations  of  these  colleges  with  the  universi- 
ties to  which  they  are  attached  differ  somewhat.  Under  one  mode  of 
affiliation  the  teaching  in  the  woman's  college  is  done  by  the  faculty  of 
the  affiliated  university.  This  plan  prevails  at  Radcliffe.  Another 
method  is  to  provide  an  entirely  separate  faculty  for  the  woman's  college. 
This  is  the  method  of  Western  Reserve  University. 

THE  SUMMER  SCHOOL. 

The  academic  year  is,  as  a  rule,  approximately  nine  months  long. 
It  usually  extends  from  the  middle  of  September  to  the  middle  of  June. 
Many  universities  and  colleges  now  either  maintain  a  special  summer 
school  during  about  six  weeks  of  the  vacation  period  or  carry  on  a  sum- 
mer session  lasting  throughout  the  summer  months.  Summer  schools, 
which  generally  are  confined  to  the  undergraduate  and  graduate  depart- 
ments of  arts  and  sciences,  serve  two  main  purposes.  They  enable 
teachers  in  elementary  and  secondary  schools  to  pursue  special  courses 
of  study  for  professional  advancement.  They  offer  opportunities  to 
college  or  university  students  who  have  failed  to  complete  all  the  work 
required  in  the  regular  term  to  make  good  these  deficiencies.  In  addi- 
tion, summer  schools  are  to  some  extent  patronized  by  other  classes  of 
persons.  While  in  the  majority  of  summer  schools  the  courses  are  planned 
with  special  reference  to  the  needs  of  teachers,  nevertheless  the  student 
whose  interests  are  not  pedagogical  generally  finds  summer  courses  in 
most  of  the  subjects  ordinarily  offered  by  the  institution  during  the  reg- 
ular winter  terms.  The  more  advanced  courses  usually  are  not  given 
in  summer. 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES.         23 

Summer  schools  present  special  attractions  to  the  foreign  student. 
If  he  happens  to  arrive  in  the  United  States  in  June  or  early  July,  he 
may  profitably  use  his  time  and  prepare  himself  for  his  later  regular 
matriculation  by  enrolling  in  a  good  summer  school.  Opportunities 
for  the  study  of  English  are  commonly  offered.  After  he  has  begun  his 
collegiate  or  professional  course  he  may  shorten  the  period  of  study  and 
also  learn  something  of  different  universities  by  frequenting  summer 
schools.  It  is  possible  to  complete  from  a  sixth  to  a  quarter  of  a  year's 
work  during  a  summer  course. 

SPECIAL  RESEARCH  FOUNDATIONS. 

American  higher  education  has  recently  been  reenforced  by  a  group 
of  special  foundations  established  to  further  scientific  and  sociological 
research.  Most  of  these  owe  their  origin  to  the  generosity  of  a  single 
individual  of  large  means.  While  not  educational  institutions,  these 
foundations  have  made  possible  numerous  investigations  which  have  not 
only  affected  educational  thought  and  practice  but  have  also  raised  the 
prestige  of  science  throughout  the  United  States.  They  should  there- 
fore be  reckoned  among  the  scientific  resources  of  the  Nation.  Promi- 
nent among  these  institutions  are  the  Russell  Sage  Foundation,  the  Car- 
negie Institution,  the  General  Education  Board,  the  Carnegie  Founda- 
tion for  the  Advancement  of  Teaching,  and  the  Rockefeller  Institute  for 
Medical  Research. 

COMPARISON  OF  AMERICAN  AND  FOREIGN  INSTITUTIONS. 

It  will  probably  help  the  foreign  student  to  adjust  himself  to  educa- 
tional conditions  in  the  United  States  if  his  attention  is  called  to  the 
correspondences  and  differences  between  the  principal  types  of  American 
schools,  on  the  one  hand,  and  familiar  European  and  Latin- American 
institutions  on  the  other. 

The  most  marked  differences  appear  in  the  time  allotted  to  secondary 
education  and  the  ages  at  which  it  is  begun  in  the  countries  mentioned. 
In  fact,  the  position  accorded  the  secondary  school  may  be  said  to 
determine  to  a  large  extent  the  character  of  each  country's  educational 
system.  In  France  and  Germany  the  elementary  and  secondary  school 
systems  are  entirely  separate.  They  run  along  constantly  diverging 
lines.  It  is  only  possible  to  transfer  from  the  elementary  to  the  secondary 
school  at  one  or  two  points,  and  after  the  twelfth  year  not  at  all.  To  a 
certain  extent  the  same  conditions  have  prevailed  in  England  also, 
although  they  have  lately  been  somewhat  modified.  In  all  of  these 
countries  the  elementary  school  has  generally  been  regarded  not  as  a 
place  of  preparation  for  the  secondary  school,  but  as  furnishing  a  distinct 
and  measurably  complete  scheme  of  education  designed  especially  for 
the  children  of  the  laboring  and  artisan  classes.  The  secondary  school, 
on  the  other  hand,  is  intended  for  children  of  prosperous  parents  who 


24        ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION    IN   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

plan  to  fit  themselves  for  the  professions  or  to  enter  the  civil  service. 
The  original  and  fundamental  distinction  between  the  two  systems  is  a 
social  one. 

The  figure  of  "the  educational  ladder"  best  expresses  the  popular 
conception  of  education  in  the  United  States.  The  schools  must  be  so 
organized  that  the  child  of  the  humblest  parents  may  climb  up  in  them 
and  through  them  to  the  highest  educational  advantages.  Anything 
else  is  felt  to  be  undemocratic.  The  secondary  school  is  therefore 
based  on  the  elementary  school  and  the  college  on  the  secondary  school. 

The  other  outstanding  peculiarity  in  the  United  States  plan  of  educa- 
tional organization,  namely,  the  inclusion  of  the  college  as  an  extra 
link  between  the  secondary  school  and  the  university,  has  been  alluded 
to  in  the  brief  statement  of  the  historical  evolution  of  the  college. 

The  elementary  schools  of  the  United  States  and  of  Europe,  not- 
withstanding minor  differences,  present  nearly  the  same  curriculum 
and  aim  at  imparting  approximately  the  same  amount  of  training. 
The  elementary  school  of  Latin-American  countries,  like  that  of  the 
United  States  and  unlike  those  of  Europe,  is  the  regular  preparatory 
institution  for  the  secondary  school  or  liceo.  But  the  division  line 
between  the  two  institutions  comes  earlier  in  Latin  America,  at^an 
age  more  appropriate  for  the  beginning  of  secondary  education.  This, 
however,   naturally  reduces  the  range  of  the  elementary  curriculum. 

European  nations  and  Latin-American  countries  are  substantially 
agreed  as  to  the  purpose  and  compass  of  secondary  instruction.  The 
practices  of  no  two  countries  are  alike  in  all  details,  but  in  general  the 
secondary  course  is  made  up  of  languages,  ancient  and  modern; 
mathematics  up  to  or  through  calculus;  the  elements  of  the  natural 
sciences;  history;  the  literature  of  the  vernacular;  the  outlines  of 
philosophy  and  logic.  In  other  words,  secondary  education  is  con- 
ceived as  properly  dealing  with  knowledge  which  has  general  use  and 
validity,  scientifically  arranged  and  organized  to  show  the  casual  re- 
lations between  facts  or  phenomena.  It  includes  training  in  orderly 
and  independent  methods  of  study.  It  aims  to  sharpen  the  esthetic 
and  moral  perceptions.  Secondary  education  concerns  itself  little 
with  the  purely  empirical;  that  is  more  particularly  the  province  of 
elementary  training.  It  prepares  for  the  philosophical  or  minutely 
specialized  pursuit  of  knowledge,  which  is  the  field  of  higher  educa- 
tion. The  period  of  general  cultural  training  of  the  individual  prop- 
erly terminates  with  the  completion  of  the  secondary  school  course, 
which  is  fittingly  recognized  by  the  bestowal  of  the  bachelor's  degree. 
The  six,  eight,  or  nine  years  of  secondary  instruction  in  the  countries 
mentioned  are  held  to  be  sufficient  for  the  accomplishment  of  this 
general  purpose. 

The  function  which  is  fulfilled  in  France,  Germany,  and  Latin 
America  by  the  secondary  school  is  shared  in  the  United  States  by 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES.        25 

two  institutions — the  secondary  school  and  the  college.  It  is  gener- 
ally admitted  that  the  American  student  who  has  completed  a  sec- 
ondary school  course  and  two  years  of  a  general  course  in  arts  or 
sciences  at  an  American  college  may  be  ranked  with  the  holder  of  the 
baccalaureate  of  the  French  lycee  or  the  Abiturientenzeugnis  of  the 
German  gymnasium.  Those  professional  schools  which  demand  two 
years  of  collegiate  study  for  entrance  maintain  approximately  the 
same  standards  of  entrance,  then,  as  the  French  and  German  univer- 
sities, which  are  only  open  to  holders  of  the  two  certificates  just 
mentioned. 

THE  FOREIGNER  AT  AN  AMERICAN  UNIVERSITY. 

It  is  essential  that  the  foreign  student  who  contemplates  studying 
at  an  American  college  or  university  should  first  be  fairly  fluent  in 
the  use  of  English.  He  should  at  least  know  the  language  well  enough 
to  be  able  to  read  it  and  to  follow  lectures  given  in  it.  If  he  does  not 
have  this  knowledge  when  he  arrives  in  the  United  States  it  will  prob- 
ably be  best  for  him  to  spend  several  months  (three  or  four  should 
suffice)  studying  English  under  competent  instruction  before  attempt- 
ing to  register  in  a  university  for  either  a  general  or  professional  course. 

Once  having  mastered  the  vernacular  sufficiently  to  make  his  way 
as  a  student  and  to  take  an  intelligent  part  in  the  social  activities 
of  the  university  community  the  foreign  student  will  find  himself 
accepted  as  in  every  sense  a  full-fledged  member  of  the  institution. 
Then  it  rests  with  him  what  his  place  shall  be.  If  he  is  agreeable, 
capable,  and  adaptable  he  will  suffer  no  handicaps  in  his  relations 
with  the  natives.  On  the  contrary,  he  will  receive  a  most  cordial 
welcome. 

The  only  national  or  Federal  agency  connected  with  educational 
interests  is — 

THE  UNITED  STATES  BUREAU  OF  EDUCATION. 

The  purposes  of  the  Bureau  of  Education,  as  defined  in  the  act  estab- 
lishing it,  are  "  to  collect  statistics  and  facts  showing  the  condition  and 
progress  of  education  in  the  several  States  and  Territories  and  to  diffuse 
such  information  respecting  the  organization  and  management  of 
schools  and  school  systems  and  methods  of  teaching  as  shall  aid  the 
people  of  the  United  States  in  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of 
efficient  school  systems  and  otherwise  promote  the  cause  of  education 
throughout  the  country. " 

The  bureau  was  originally  created  an  independent  department  by  an 
act  of  Congress  approved  March  2,  1867,  and  continued  as  such  until 
July  1 ,  1869,  when,  according  to  a  provision  contained  in  one  of  the  annual 
appropriation  acts,  approved  July  20,  1868,  it  was  constituted  an  office 
or  bureau  in  the  Department  of  the  Interior. 


26        ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES. 

The  subject  of  education  is  not  specifically  mentioned  in  the  Constitu- 
tion of  the  United  States.  The  Federal  Government  maintains  no 
national  system  of  public  schools,  the  establishment,  maintenance,  and 
control  of  such  schools  and  school  systems  being  left  to  the  individual 
States.  But  from  the  inception  of  the  Republic  the  Federal  Government 
has  encouraged  education  in  the  several  States  and  made  provision  for 
schools  in  its  Territories.  The  necessity  of  some  central  agency  for  the 
collection  and  study  of  educational  statistics  and  data  was  early  seen  and 
appreciated. 

As  will  be  noted  from  the  foregoing,  the  bureau  is  primarily  an  institu- 
tion for  educational  research  and  promotion.  The  act  creating  it  gives 
it  no  administrative  duties.  Such  administrative  duties  as  it  possesses 
have  been  subsequently  assigned  to  it.  These  include  (a)  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  educational  system,  medical  relief,  and  reindeer  herds  for 
the  natives  of  Alaska;  and  (b)  duties  connected  with  the  administration 
of  the  income  resulting  from  the  principal  obtained  by  the  sale  of  lands 
granted  under  the  first  Morrill  Act  (July  2,  1862),  for  the  establishment 
of  colleges  of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts,  an  amount  approxi- 
mating $1,009,225,  and  of  the  Morrill- Nelson  fund,  which  amounts  to 
$2,500,000  annually,  $50,000  a  year  going  to  each  State,  Hawaii,  and 
Porto  Rico.  The  bureau  is  required  to  see  that  the  annual  income  from 
the  first  fund  is  at  least  5  per  cent  and  that  it  is  expended  according  to 
the  requirements  of  the  first  Morrill  Act.  It  must  also  audit  the  expendi- 
ture of  the  $50,000  granted  annually  for  the  maintenance  of  colleges  of 
agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts. 

The  bureau  has  two  general  types  of  activities:  First,  those  of  a  more 
or  less  routine  character  (called  stated  or  continuing  activities) ;  and  sec- 
ond, the  activities  of  highly  trained  experts  in  various  fields  of  education, 
known  as  the  technical  staff.  Of  the  first  there  are  seven  divisions,  as . 
follows:  Editorial,  library,  statistics,  Alaska,  stenographic,  mails  and  files, 
and  messenger  service.  These  are  under  the  general  direction  of  the  chief 
clerk. 

The  technical  staff  is  organized  into  four  divisions  under  the  direction 
of  the  assistant  to  the  commissioner — higher  education,  rural  schools, 
city  schools,  and  service  division.  The  latter  includes  physical  education 
and  school  hygiene,  industrial  education,  home  economics,  commercial 
education,  educational  legislation,  and  foreign  education. 

The  bureau  endeavors  (i)  to  serve  as  a  clearing  house  for  accurate  and 
comprehensive  information  in  respect  to  all  educational  agencies  and  all 
forms  of  education  in  the  United  States  and  all  foreign  countries  and  to 
disseminate  this  information  among  school  officers,  teachers,  students  of 
education,  and  all  others  definitely  interested  in  any  form  of  educational 
activity;  (2)  to  serve  as  a  clearing  house  for  the  best  opinions  on  school 
organization  and  administration,  courses  of  study,  methods  of  teaching, 
etc. ;  (3)  to  advise  legislatures,  school  officers,  teachers,  and  others  engaged 


ORGANIZATION   OF   EDUCATION   IN  THE   UNITED   STATES.        27 

in  promoting  and  directing  education;  (4)  to  determine  standards  of 
measurement  in  education  and  to  conduct  and  direct  experiments  in 
education,  etc. 

The  bureau  reaches  the  country  through  its  pubHcations  and  through 
the  activities  of  its  speciaUsts  in  the  field.  It  has  made  a  number  of 
valuable  surveys  of  city  and  State  school  systems,  etc. 

For  carrying  on" the  work  of  the  bureau,  exclusive  of  the  work  in  Alaska, 
there  are  now  in  the  offices  in  Washington  87  people.  Of  these  approxi- 
mately one-third  are  specialists  in  the  various  lines  of  educational  re- 
search and  promotion. 

The  present  Commissioner  of  Education  is  Dr.  John  J.  Tigert  (June  2, 
192 1,  to  date). 

o 


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